


Wandering Stars

by ajarsene



Category: Persona 3, Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, I think it's clear who reincarnated lmao, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Reincarnation, Slice of Life, Slow Build, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-10-09 12:34:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17407001
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ajarsene/pseuds/ajarsene
Summary: Perhaps it's a twist of luck or pull of fate that led her here, but she knew better than that. The game has changed and new players have entered the ring. Distortion and corruption continue to grow and the spirit of rebellion still sings louder than ever, but would the outcome of the game still remain the same?Alternatively, reincarnated P3 protag in P5 timeline with our favorite Justice Gekkou kid in the mix.





	1. Fate Intertwined

**Author's Note:**

> **A/N:** hello! this is cross-posted from FFN, but i intend to make big improvements on this fic. the beginnings of this was kinda aimless as i thought it'd be, but this time i have a clearer direction on where this is going. of course, it'll follow P5's timeline, but expect a few twists and turns along the way, esp. with our secondary protag herself! i might the update the FFN version soon, but my primary focus is this version here (that, and along with updating my other fic here on AO3). that said, i hope you guys enjoy this in the long run! <3

How long had it been since she was chained to keep the world's ruin at bay? She couldn't tell. Time flowed differently from where she was held captive—sluggish, distorted, out of loop, unlike from where the seasons passed like clockwork in the realm above. That kind of clockwork was a funny concept to her, how people tend to grasp and materialize it in their own terms and then forcefully shove their definitions in the throats of anyone. So as long as it's tangible, anyone would believe in those perspectives.

Time would never stop for anyone, they failed to realize that.

It would never stop for her either, she accepted it. While the flow of time in the darkness was comparably different from what she used to know, she found a strange sense of comfort in it. Befriend the clock, they would say, for it was man's companion throughout their lifetime. Oddly enough, she agreed with that sentiment. Sometimes, she would hear lapses of conversations, whispers of the past but it felt like a faraway dream to her. She wanted to believe it was time's way of acquiescing her pain and restlessness. After all, time and darkness were her only companions from the solitude she gained for accepting full responsibility of her actions.

Until she felt herself falling.

Without warning, she felt the barbed wire chains disappear and her chest lightening, letting her breathe more easily now. She felt herself falling downwards, albeit in a slow, muddled manner. Her senses told her to brace herself, to prepare to have what little of herself left be completely destroyed when she would reach the bottom of her fall.

But two strong arms caught her instead, and she instinctively clung to whoever caught her. The warmth emanating from the person was so comforting, a stark contrast to the darkness she knew.

" _You are free from the Seal now, my dear,"_ a voice finally spoke, one that was strangely familiar to her yet she couldn't remember where she had heard it. It felt like a distant memory.  _"The bonds you have forged are very powerful; I have underestimated them. These will keep the Seal in its place."_

Silence enveloped them, as if giving her time to recollect her senses. Even so, she couldn't understand what the voice meant.

" _That is alright, you will understand in time,"_ a chuckle was heard from the person holding her in their arms.  _"For now, you must wake up."_

" _Your contract has expired, but fate has always worked in mysterious ways. Another journey has begun, and you, my dear guest, must help our new guest before he falls to his peril."_

Her thoughts were still confused as the familiar voice continued on.  _"We do not have much time; the malevolent entity rises and he senses our move. We must make haste now. Theodore, bring me Lavenza. Tell her it's time."_

With those words being spoken, she felt a tug in her consciousness, as if calling her to be somewhere. She felt herself fade back into the darkness once more, instinctively welcoming it as if it were her friend, before hearing the voice one last time.  _"Perhaps in the end, you need not to return here. But for now, you must wake up, my dear Fool."_

* * *

  **April 9th, Saturday**

* * *

She felt her head lulled to the side, accidentally hitting against the window of the train she was in. She blinked her eyes open before shutting quickly, the light peering from outside hurting her eyes. Though her eyes had been shut close, she could feel her body moving in a little forward, capturing the warmth from outside, and strangely familiar music playing in her ears.

Brilliant coppery eyes slowly opened again, adjusting to the light as she took in her surroundings.

She was on a train, sunlight seeping from her window and music playing in her headphones as the trip carried on. She turned her head towards the light, looking at the infinite skyline of buildings and skyscrapers of wherever she was traveling in with one thought running in her head. While looking out the window, she also caught sight of the pale reflection off it. A teenage girl with long, silky black hair clipped back with barrettes bearing the Roman numerals XXII, just enough to let her bangs flow freely and frame her face, and rich copper eyes looking back at her. She wore a dark gray jacket with a pocket over her the left side of her chest, a beige turtleneck sweater underneath it and dark jeans. A pair of earphones covered said part of her body that seemed like she never took them off.

 _Where am I? Who_ am  _I?_

A moment after that thought, a song started to play through her ears as she lightly touched the earphones over them.  _"Write me an endless song…"_

Without a second thought, her hand went to the strange device (her cellphone? She knew it had to be that, but it felt strange for her to hold it) and tapped the screen on it to turn off the music. She pulled her earphones down to hang around her neck as she shifted in her seat to get a better sense of comfort when she felt something drop from her lap. Looking down, she found a thick manila folder that seemed to be perfectly intact despite the unceremonious fall. She leaned over to pick it up, opening the folder gingerly as she went back to sitting properly.

The first thing she saw was a picture of herself staring back at her clipped to layers of papers and forms. Flipping the picture to the side, she scanned in the first page when a name in bold print caught her attention.

**Shiomi Reina.**

It was a nice name, yet it didn't sound right to her.  _Was this really my name…?_ She went to skim through the next pages with dexterity, finding any more relevant information that could jog her memory, as she leaned back against the seat into a more comfortable position.  _Transfer forms and transcripts from previous schools attended, medical records on spending a year in the hospital for treatment of some problem they didn't specify… I'm going to some school called Shujin Academy, and it's going to be my second year there?_

As she read the answers to the questions she had in her mind, none of them really clicked with her. It didn't coincide with her nonexistent memory, and it felt incredibly off to her.

_This is starting to scare me… who exactly am I?_

At the end of the pile of documents, a single yellow post it note was stuck on the last paper. She peeled it off to take a better look at it.

**Yongen-Jaya.**

That was it—no phone number attached, nor a specific address. She cursed quietly to herself, running one hair through her bangs.  _This has got to be a sick joke. Whoever plotted this is not making things easy for me..._

With a sigh, she returned the files back inside the folder and turned, taking a good look at her surroundings. It seemed to be like any ordinary train traveling across the busy Tokyo streets, packed with people of different age groups getting to their destinations. Though for some reason, she couldn't remember any prior experience of her traversing to the city proper this way. With that thought mulling over her head, she was about to stare back outside the window when she caught sight of someone sitting in the other end of the train.

There was nothing peculiar about him. He looked unassuming, with his fluffy black hair and steely gray eyes covered by his glasses. He wore a black jacket, left unbuttoned to reveal a cream colored sweater, and a pair of blue jeans. He seemed to be lost in thought, an unreadable expression marring his features, when he looked up and met her gaze.

Time seemed to stop flowing momentarily around them. There was something akin to recognition and surprise in the boy's face, but that was impossible; she never knew or saw him until today. For a moment, she caught a glimpse of a bluish flicker in his eyes and the sound of a crackling fire from the distance.

_The Arcana is the means by which all is revealed…_

An announcement that they arrived in Shibuya broke the stillness, and just like that, time resumed. The sea of people getting off the train blocked her view of the boy who was staring at her earlier, disappearing from her sight. She gathered her bag, folder held securely in her arms, and allowed herself to be led outside of the station with the swarm of people.

As if the inside was crowded enough, the streets of Shibuya was horrifyingly amassed with people. She bit back a groan and tried to navigate her way through the crowd, in hopes of maybe catching sight of that boy again. Although she was sure she had never met him in her entire life (or her previous life), there was something in him that sparked a familiarity within her. Like they were one and the same.

Unfortunately, the masses of people in a rush to get to their desired destinations left her being pushed left and right. It was impossible to catch him in this crowd.

With a disappointed sigh, Reina (she needed to call herself something, besides maybe after she got used to it, some of her memories would come back to her) shifted the weight of her bag a bit before deciding to look for this Yongen-Jaya place, wherever that could be.  _Maybe I'll find him soon enough…_

Unknowingly to her, a red icon with a distorted black eye design had suddenly appeared on her phone.

* * *

All she could hear was a fizzing TV static that felt unsettling and surreal.

Reina had opened her eyes to a surreal yet grotesque world akin to Shibuya's underground station. The halls were bleeding red and purple, the lights were extremely dim they could almost fade out. The TV screens around her showed nothing but static, and the walls looked like a mass of red and black veins, spreading throughout the ceilings and wherever it could touch like cancer cells.

As for herself, she realized that she was wearing her new school uniform.

Reina placed a hand on her head, trying to rack her brain on how she ended up here. After learning how to tamper with her phone (the phone model felt  _way_ too new for her, as if it was years advanced from what she knew), she made use of the navigation app on it and found her way to Yongen-Jaya, the place written on the sticky note. She had a hunch that this was where she would be living, but she took time to ask people around if they knew where she was actually staying. Most of them were clueless, if not annoyed to have her bother them with her questions. Luckily, a man who seemed to be closing up a nearby cafe had an idea of her arrival there and guided her to the house she was staying, which happened to be a few blocks near the cafe. Apparently he was friends with her new guardian, but the said person wasn't going to be around until Monday so the man told her to might as well make herself feel at home with her new living quarters.

She remembered unpacking the few things that really did belong to her—some clothes, her new school uniform, a few books, and a small box that seemed to be sealed shut—before flopping onto her bed and falling into dreamland.

 _This must be a dream then…_ With no other options in her mind, she got up from the ground and decided to walk around carefully in this strange area.

All she could see was a replication of the area, patterning itself, as she delved cautiously deeper. As far as she was concerned, she was also the only person in this strange world.

She had walked for quite a while, when voice was heard from nowhere.  _ **"Do you seek emancipation…?"**_

Reina stopped walking as she waited to hear the voice again, unsure whether it belonged to someone human. All she could think of it was that it was deep, too cold and menacing that it sent a shiver down her spine.

_**"So… you are the extra player in this game… how clever of him to put you in the arena…"** _

She could hear the unsettling static from the TVs grow louder, and instinctively she put on a fighting stance. She felt a gust of wind pass through the area a bit, and as soon as it passed, she was surprised to see what was in her possession. A naginata held firmly in her right hand, and a gun holstered around her hips.

_**"Let me see what you are capable of…"** _

She could feel a malevolent force surrounding her despite not seeing a figure of sorts. Without much of a thought, Reina lunged forward and drew forth her naginata, slashing at thin air.

It seemed to hit something as she pulled back, and the voice spoke again.  _ **"Hmm… so your heart sees where the distortion begins…"**_

Reina didn't give a thought on what the voice meant on its words. Instead, the dark haired girl pulled out the gun from her holster, but instead of pointing it at wherever this force was coming from, she pointed it at her head. Pulling the trigger, she heard the sound of glass breaking and a shadowed figure appeared from above her, swooping down to hit the force with whatever it was holding.

_**"Isn't this quite a sight… you still put up a fight even without your memory… perhaps you could be useful in this game…"** _

At that, the dark and red hues in the area seemed to pulse around her. She was starting to feel nauseous and tired, but nonetheless she tried to hack and slash at wherever the force was, but her naginata didn't seem to hit anything. She shot herself in the head again and the shadowed figure emerged, but it didn't seem to hit anything either.

_**"Your tricks of old are astounding, but it seems that he has restricted the potential that flows in you… this is truly interesting…** _

_**"Let us play this game on my terms… and perhaps when you understand the facets of it..."**_ A chuckle was heard, amused by this notion.  _ **"We shall meet again… I look forward to it, Fool…"**_

With that, Reina felt herself losing consciousness and the world turned to black around her.

* * *

  **April 10th, Sunday.**

* * *

Reina woke up in cold sweat, sitting up abruptly and throwing the covers off her. She breathed heavily, slightly aware of the sunlight streaming through her window and the clock on her bedside reading 7:00 AM. "What the hell… was that…?!"

Slowly, she managed to catch her breath again, evening it out, and calmness started to return to her senses. However, it was short-lived as she stifled the urge to scream in panic when she looked down at her hands.

The same naginata she had in her dreams were grasped in both of her hands, the gun that she had dream to shoot herself with was nowhere to be found. It took most of Reina's willpower not to scream at the sight of the weapon that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Calm down, Reina," she told herself, though her voice sounded faraway to her. "First, you need to stash this away so nobody could see them, not even your guardian. The last thing you need is a botched up explanation on where you got this, or you'll never hear the end of it from the cops. Then, you'll get dressed and introduce yourself to your new guardian. And after that, you'll figure out what to do with this weapon and what you're going to do with your first day of school tomorrow. Yeah, that's it. Everything will be alright…"

Unfortunately, she wasn't so convinced with her last two statements.

* * *

  **April 11th, Monday.**

* * *

 

Ken Amada hated Shujin Academy.

He would have dismissed the idea of the school itself had it not bragged for being one of the better known schools in Tokyo and guaranteeing a college application in any university in Japan. That, and also Mitsuru Kirijo had helped in pulling strings for him to enroll and stay there for his high school career. He felt that he owed her that much for it, aside from providing him shelter and enough money to support his basic needs and everything that had happened since six years ago or so. And for a moment, he did find Shujin Academy a competent school… had it not been for the students and faculty themselves.

Ken grimaced inwardly as he passed through the throng of students in the hallway, chatters and gossips filling every nook and cranny. The topic was all the same—a transfer student was coming in today, but apparently he had a criminal record to his name. Despite the pristine reputation Shujin consistently kept over the years, it took the brunette by surprise that the school board would let a juvenile student enroll here. Something about having to boost the school's reputation, he supposed? However, it didn't really seem the case when the students broke out in whispers and thought of conspiracies on what kind of crime the transfer student committed.

 _Gekkoukan was much nicer compared to this…_ He thought, remembering how the students were friendlier and didn't really talk bad about anyone there.

He sighed and continued his pace, not wanting to bother himself with the rumors going about. He climbed a flight of stairs and took a few more steps in the hall before stopping short at a door where a female student with dark brown hair styled in a bob cut was about to get inside.

"Makoto-san," Ken greeted. Crimson irises flitted to his light brown eyes, recognition apparent. "Ken-san, glad you could make it for the meeting."

"Wouldn't dream of being late for it." Ken remarked, humoring her. The girl, Makoto, just gave a small smile of amusement and pushed the door open, where a couple of members from the student council gathered and chattered quietly among themselves.

"Alright, settle down now." Makoto said, signaling everyone to keep quiet. Ken took a seat nearest to the door as the student council president took out a file from her bag, showing to her fellow council members a bespectacled guy in the Shujin Academy uniform. Ken didn't seem to recognize him though. "Okay, first order of business, we have a new transfer student coming in today. His name is Kurusu Akira, and—"

"Wait, I heard about this!" One student council member perked up and cut off the president, worry evident in her tone. "Didn't he assaulted some adult or something?"

Whispers started to grow among the members, concern showing in their faces. Ken felt equally pissed and intrigued at how the conversation was now flowing.  _They're jumping to conclusions already, I can't believe this._ _It's too soon to even tell…_

"I was about to get to that point before I was so rudely interrupted," Makoto commented, giving a pointed look at the girl's direction. "But anyway, if that's the case, then we should keep a close eye on him. Though this should have been something confidential among the teachers. How the students figured this out in the first place…"

"Shouldn't we be concerned about the students' safety for this?" A male member spoke, before glancing over at Ken. "Amada-san, you're the Head of the Disciplinary Committee. Shouldn't you do something about this?"

"He hasn't assaulted anyone here, as far as I'm concerned," Ken said, unamused and annoyed at the overreaction of his fellow council members. "As long as he hasn't hurt anyone, I don't think there's a need to tell him off."

"But he's a  _criminal_ ," another girl said, exaggerating on the last word.

"He would have been in juvie, if that's the case." Ken rebutted. "But he's studying here now, right? The new kid is probably just serving a probationary sentence here. If he's smart, he wouldn't cause any trouble unless he wants to spend time in juvie."

"Ugh, but why our school?"

"The principal probably just wants to boost our rep, like we can make him change his ways or something!"

"That's just bullshit."

Ken sighed and tuned out the comments of the other council members. He questioned their credibility to be in position sometimes.

Makoto clapped her hands, catching everyone's attention back to her. "Okay, enough of that. On a similar note, another transfer student's coming in this morning too, and the principal asked if one of us could volunteer to show her around Shujin—"

"Another one? What are the odds…"

"Do you think she's a felon, just like that other transfer student?"

"I'll bet she's a babe or something."

Ken suddenly raised his hand. "I'll do it, Makoto-san," he said a little too loudly. The comments were starting to grate on his nerves, and he needed a way to wheedle out of this before he would lose it.

"Perfect!" Makoto exclaimed, relief subtly showing in her face. "She should be waiting in the principal's office by now. Her homeroom teacher should be Inui-sensei."

Ken nodded, standing up from his seat and heading towards the door, not before hearing Makoto drone about the upcoming volleyball rally. When he closed the door leading to the student council room, he let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't that he hated his position on the council, but sometimes he questioned his decision on it. There was a rush he felt whenever he could help out his fellow students and give them the justice they deserve, especially when the adults couldn't do anything about it. But he wished he could say the same for his other council members…

Picking up his pace, he decided to push those thoughts at the back of his mind.  _Now, I wonder what the new girl's like..._

* * *

 _I feel like I'm in a prison filled with gajillion inmates,_ Reina thought glumly, discreetly scrunching her face.  _Like the students are the convicts, and the teachers are the damned correctional officers…_

She arrived earlier than she was expected to be in Shujin Academy and took a good, solemn look at her new school. Despite the prestige it held to its name, she couldn't help but shake the feeling of being trapped inside here. After a while, she let herself follow the flow of students trickling inside the school, wandering around a bit until she found the principal's office. Her guardian, who turned out to be an owner of a medical clinic named Tae Takemi, was supposed to help her in settling in her transfer to Shujin, but a few calls from patients who needed her direct attention in her clinic left Reina having to deal with it all by herself.

(She couldn't blame Dr. Takemi for that, though. Even if she seemed nonchalant and languorous about taking her in, not to mention the medical drugs she's engineering on.  _They're my own creation so of course they'll be safe, does it look like I'm willing to spill blood on my patients?_ she mentioned yesterday when Reina asked about her medical practice. The dark haired teen had placed her trust on her guardian on that… but she was still cautious whenever Takemi would ask if Reina would like to try the drug.)

Reina almost blanched at the sight of the principal sitting behind his desk. He was ridiculously stout and rotund, almost reminding her of a walking potato. His bald head didn't seem to help the case, neither did his suit that seemed to threaten to rip should he put in more food in his stomach. Next to him was a tall, mildly muscular man in athletic wear. He had long black, unkempt hair and thick eyebrows, and jawline that was broad and square. The two men seemed to be deeply immersed in their talk until Reina noticeably cleared her throat, alerting them of her presence.

"Ah! You must be the other transfer student. Shiomi Reina, right?" The principal said, upon noticing her standing in front of them. Reina could feel the heated and curious stare coming from the other man, and she shifted uncomfortably in her place. "Yes, that would be me. I'm sorry my guardian couldn't come and accompany me today. Dr. Takemi has patients that needs her immediate care."

The portly man didn't seem to care much of what she said, and continued speaking. "My name is Principal Kobayakawa. Now, we've received your transcripts from the schools you've attended, and my, you're quite a star student! Your academic scores are stellar and you have been given recognition on being part of the volleyball team in your previous school." While he droned on about her achievements (which she couldn't quite remember), Reina could almost feel the malicious smirk on the other man's face. She felt vulnerable in her position, and she felt like any minute, that man would swoop in and take her like some prey.

 _Can you please shut up and get on with it? I want to get out of here_ , she mentally screamed.

"Although it's a pity that you had to lose your parents and nearly your own life in an accident on a bridge more than ten years ago in Port Island," Principal Kobayakawa said, sympathy evident in his voice, and Reina darkened at that. Though she vaguely recalled that, she couldn't believe this man was talking about a sensitive incident like it was another trivial topic. "With that said, we will be sure to welcome you to Shujin Academy with open arms, Shiomi-san."

Then, he gestured towards the man next to him, who was still focusing on her. "Before I forget, this is Kamoshida Suguru, the school's PE teacher as well as the coach of the volleyball team and former Olympian gold medalist." The principal's tone was so patronizing that Reina had to hide her grimace at that. "Unfortunately, your homeroom teacher, Mr. Inui, isn't here right now, but I supposed Mr. Kamoshida wouldn't mind giving you a tour around the campus?"

"Not at all, principal!" The other man, Kamoshida, said. His smile was too wide and cheerful that Reina felt unnerved by it. "It would be an honor showing this lovely lady around our school. Perhaps I can show her the gym where the volleyball team practices, show her some few tricks of the trade!"

"N-No, it's fine, really!" Reina said, attempting to pull herself out of her situation. "I wasn't really planning to join volleyball this year…"

Kamoshida didn't seem to be deterred by it. "You can get far if you join, you can even get the starter position. I assure you, it will be an honor to have you play on our Nationals-level volleyball team. And with a build like that," his eyes glazed over her body, lingering a little too longer for her comfort. "You would make an excellent addition!"

Before she could politely decline his offer, a knock was heard before the door opened, letting in a male student. "Excuse me, Principal Kobayakawa. I'm from the student council, and you sent someone to show the transfer student around…?"

"Ah, that's right!" The said man exclaimed in realization. "I requested Niijima-san for that. I'm glad you took up the request, Amada-san."

"It's no trouble at all, sir." Ken said politely, before turning around to the new student. Reina swore she saw his brown eyes flicker in shock, and she couldn't help but feel something nagging at the back of her mind, as if telling her she should remember him.  _Why does he seem familiar…?_

"I don't think there's a need for him to show her around," Kamoshida huffed, obviously displeased at Ken's sudden appearance. "He should be heading back to class! I can take it from here."

"It's fine, Kamoshida-sensei," Ken said coolly, though he could feel his irritation sparking up again. "Chouno-sensei is absent today, so we have a free period right now. I can show her around in the meantime. Besides, aren't you supposed to be teaching PE in a while?"

"Amada-san has a point, Suguru," Principal Kobayakawa said. "Well, now that matters are settled, I do hope you'll enjoy your stay here, Shiomi-san!"

Reina smiled politely at the two men before following Ken outside the office, sighing in relief when the two continued to walk until they were no longer in listening vicinity from them. She did notice the glower on Kamoshida's face when Ken made his point.

"Don't involve yourself with him," Ken said, not skipping a beat. He heard of the rumors of what the ex-Olympian did to his volleyball team, and admittedly, it was one of the few rumors he believed to be true.

"I won't," Reina said with a grimace. "There's something about him that's so unsettling… I don't think I want to be in the same room with him again."

Ken stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. At first glance, she seemed like any other regular student in her standard Shujin Academy uniform, although he noted she left her blazer unbuttoned and wore thigh highs instead of stockings like most of the girls in the school. Her hair was clipped back a bit with barrettes forming the Roman numeral XXII, keeping a few strands from covering her copper eyes. But, for some reason, Ken swore that he looked like someone who was important to him from years ago (even though this was the first time he met her).

 _I'm probably just overthinking this,_ he told himself mentally, shaking his head. Pushing that thought to the recesses of his mind, he gave the new girl a small smile. "Good. Even without the rumors, he spells trouble for you."

Reina tilted her head in confusion. "Huh? Rumors?"

"I'll tell you about them some time," he said with a chuckle. Then, he offered hand out towards her. "Anyway, I'll be showing you around Shujin. My name is Amada Ken."

She looked at it a bit before taking his hand into hers, shaking it. There was a jolt of familiarity when their hands touched.  _Huh, what is this…_

Deciding to not trouble herself with this now, she offered Ken a smile of her own. "Nice to meet you, Amada-kun. I'm Shiomi Reina."

 


	2. Shades of Shujin

**April 11th, Monday.**

* * *

 

Reina lightly tapped her pencil to the beat of the music pouring from one earbud of her earphones, the other dangling around her neck to half-listen to whatever their teacher was droning on about. She was seated at the farthest end of the room, just beside the window and next to an empty seat on her left where she wouldn't be easily seen. Other than being saved from the uneasiness exuded from Kamoshida and being toured around the campus by Ken Amada ( _Amada-senpai_ , she corrected herself -mentally. She learned that he was her senior despite the youthful features he had on himself, so it was only respectful to call him such), the rest of her first day in Shujin Academy was dull. She heard the mindless chatter coming from the students when she walked past them in the halls, but even the gossip wasn't enough to pique her interest. It mostly revolved around the transfer student (the other one, not her) who apparently was a convicted felon and had yet to grace the halls with his presence.

A lot of the students speculated he was planning his next assault, but Reina found the idea absurd.  _Don't judge the book by its cover._

Though the whispers were starting to get on her nerves, especially after she introduced herself to her new classmates earlier. They kept wondering whether it's pure luck to have two transfer students at the same time, or if she had a record or something scandalous to her name as well. At that point, Reina was ready to tell them off with all that nonsense, but she kept her cool.

She was not going to let something so foolish get under her skin so easily.

The sound of the light rain outside pattered in rhythm with the beat of her pencil. The boring lectures of their teacher coupled with the weather made her feel drowsy, and her music wasn't helping her either.  _Maybe if I close my eyes a bit… Sensei wouldn't probably even notice…_

There was a sound of a door opening and all eyes flitted to it, where a disheveled male student stood. A hint of a scowl was subtle on his face as he shifted his weight a bit, his bleached hair sticking out a bit in odd angles and his makeshift Shujin Academy uniform mussed up. There was a cacophony of whispers breaking out among the students, and Reina couldn't help but lower her music a bit to get a gist of what they're saying.

"Look who decided to show up at this hour…"

"Ugh, the school thug is back. Did he get into a fight again?"

"I bet he's in cahoots with that criminal transfer student…"

"Settle down, everyone." Their teacher, Ushimaru, snapped. Desks creaked and papers rustled before the class faded back into their dull silence. Ushimaru sighed and turned his attention to the newcomer. "And as for you, Sakamoto, this is the fifth time since the beginning of this term that you've been ridiculously late. Has it ever been in your best interest to actually come to class  _on time?_ "

Sakamoto just murmured a half-hearted sorry to their teacher and shuffled towards his desk, which happened to be the empty seat next to Reina. Ushimaru just sighed exasperatedly at the blatant show of behavior. "Honestly, kids these days. They don't even know the meaning of respect… Anyway, going back to what I was saying before I was  _rudely_  interrupted," he gave a pointed look at Sakamoto. "Plato's allegory of the cave simply means that before you recognize philosophy…"

He continued to drone on about the lesson, and Reina could feel the drowsiness coming back to her. Sighing, she tampered with her phone discreetly, flicking through her playlist for a decent, upbeat song to keep her up, when she felt a scrutinizing gaze on her. She turned a bit and saw Sakamoto looking at her in curiosity, though he quickly looked away in embarrassment when he noticed that he was caught red-handed.

Amused, Reina pulled out a piece of paper from her notebook and scribbled on it before passing it to her neighbor. _Hello._

Reina could feel the surprise on the boy's face with her attempt of a doodled conversation with him.  _Hey. New kid? Haven't seen ya around here._

_You got that right. I just transferred here today._

_Whoa, really? Didn't expect to see another transferee so soon. Where'd you come from?_

The question got Reina racking her mind for an answer. It's only been two days, and her memories still hadn't come back to her. Maybe the retrograde on her memory was longer than she expected it would be, but still…

Remembering the documents she had read on the transit the other day, she scribbled down her answer.  _I'm from Tatsumi Port Island, just a little off the Kansai Region._

She saw the look of amazement and surprise on her seatmate's face, and she couldn't help but smile slightly at that. From the short amount of time she had to gather her facts, Reina knew that Tatsumi Port Island had a reputation to hold. After all, it was one of those man-made islands with highly advanced technology and higher par way of life. Not to mention it was headed by the Kirijo Group.

"It looks like you're on the roll of getting on my bad side, Sakamoto. What's that you've got in your hands?"

Reina winced when she saw the highly irritated look on their teacher's face. At once, the whole class shifted their attention towards the blonde, who looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He tried to sputter an excuse, but the words the came out of his mouth made no sense.

She knew it was her fault that he got into this situation, and so Reina raised her hand to catch the teacher's attention. "It was my fault, sensei. I was only asking him about the lessons you've had so far. I didn't mean to interrupt the class."

Ushimaru gave her a disapproving look, but nonetheless sighed. "I understand that you've only transferred here just now, but the next time you ask for the lessons, please do it when the discussion is over, Shiomi-san. Otherwise, you're no better than Sakamoto."

Reina felt a hot rush of anger in her cheeks, but she just gritted her teeth and stayed quiet. How could judged when he knew nothing about her in the first place?  _Don't judge the book by its cover, that's what they_ all _say._

She stayed quiet for the rest of the class, letting the music in her earphones drown her attention instead. The rest of the class went like a blur, and the next thing she knew, the bell rang and signaled their dismissal. She was one of the first to leave the classroom, having only little to pack up, but she didn't make it so far when she felt someone running to catch up to her.

"Hey, thanks for saving my ass back there," Her seatmate—Sakamoto, she remembered—said with a small, grateful smile. Then, he looked down. "You didn't really have to do that though."

Reina shrugged and waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine, really. I don't think you deserve that."

She didn't miss the shocked look on his face.  _I guess he doesn't get that a lot…_  "Still, that's nice of you to do that. I'm Sakamoto Ryuji, by the way."

"Shiomi Reina."

Before he could add anything more, something seemed to have caught Sakamoto's attention. He walked past Reina with a determined look in his eyes, and the black-haired girl turned to see him approaching to a student and a teacher. The teacher, who looked rather unconventional with her less-than-formal wear and unkempt hair, seemed to be immersed in her conversation with the student when she noticed Sakamoto walking towards them and scowled. "Speak of the devil," she said as she crossed her arms. "What do you want? I heard the police caught you cutting classes today."

"It's nothing," Sakamoto remarked, mirroring the scowl on the teacher's face.

She sighed exasperatedly. "And you haven't dyed your hair back to black either…"

"Sorry," he replied curtly, before turning to the student. By that time, Reina was within their range when she realized with a jolt that the student looked familiar to her.  _Didn't I meet him before?_

"I'll be waitin' on the rooftop," Reina heard Sakamoto say that to the other guy quietly, before taking his leave.

The teacher observed the whole exchange with a tired look on her face. "See? That's why I don't want you getting involved." She remarked, before looking up and seeing Reina standing before them. "Oh, you're the other transfer student, right? Shiomi Reina?"

Reina flinched slightly, realizing she caught their attention. She was supposed to leave quietly after Sakamoto left her, but she guessed that wasn't going to be the case. "Yeah, that's me," she said, albeit reluctantly. She also noticed that the student with the teacher shifted his attention to her, the curiosity shining in his steel gray eyes.

"Well, welcome to Shujin Academy. I'm Kawakami-sensei," the teacher, Kawakami, said with a small smile, although it seemed forced. "I guess you and Sakamoto are classmates, right? I already told Kurusu-kun this, but try not to get yourselves involved with him. Understood?" With that, she walked away.

Reina frowned. She didn't get why the people here had it bad for her classmate. Sakamoto seemed like a nice person to her, albeit a little rough around the edges.  _What happened here that made him earn their prejudice?_

She turned a bit and saw the student—the other transfer student—still looking at her with confusion and curiosity.  _Is he thinking the same thing too? Why do I feel like I know him somewhere?_

But before she could ask, she saw two faculty members climbing up the stairwell, unaware that they were still in the vicinity as they chatted loudly to each other.

"Why did you allow a student like him to transfer here? He's already associating himself with Sakamoto," Kamoshida complained. "A student with a criminal record, and a culprit of an assault case… At this rate, it'd be pointless how much I contribute to this school," he sighed, placing his hands on his hips.

Reina noticed the student next to her seemed to have set his jaw, a mix of hurt and anger flickering in his eyes.  _So, this was that juvenile transfer student the Shujin rumor mill kept going on about? He looks completely harmless to me._

Principal Kobayakawa held up his hands placatingly. "Now, don't be like that. The school needs you, Kamoshida-kun. You are our star." He consoled, and Reina didn't miss the shower of pride he had in his tone. Then, he shook his head. "A steady build-up is necessary behind such brilliance…"

Kamoshida sighed and closed his eyes in displeasure. "Your troubles never seem to end, Principal Kobayakawa." Then, he forcefully grinned. "But I understand. I'll continue to do my best to answer your expectations of me."

With that, they both turned and walked towards the faculty office.

Reina frowned at the whole exchange. _Isn't a criminal record supposed to be confidential? Why the heck are they talking about it so loudly?_

"Yeah, it's supposed to be. I can't wait to hear what else the rumor mill has to say about this," the sarcastic, baritone voice caught Reina off guard, and the girl couldn't help but pink slightly when she realized that she was thinking out loud. "Kawakami-sensei said you're the other transfer student, right?" He said, raising a hand in greeting. "I'm Kurusu Akira, but you probably know that already."

"I'm Shiomi Reina," Reina said and took his hand in hers, shaking it slightly. Then, she gave him a contemplative look. "For someone with a supposed criminal record, you seem like a nice person."

There's a flicker of unreadable emotion in his eyes. "Well, you can't judge a book by its cover."

"That's what they all say, Kurusu-san."

Kurusu Akira let out a dry chuckle. "Whatever floats your boat then. Anyway, I'll take my leave first, Shiomi-san." He turned and headed straight for the stairwell, but before he could climb up, he looked back with a slight smile on his face.

"... Thanks."

* * *

Ryuji looked up when he saw the door to the rooftop creaked open. He felt a pang of guilt when Kurusu Akira, the school's current and reputable delinquent, blatantly ignored the  _Do Not Enter_  sign plastered on the door. It was only Akira's first day, and he was breaking rules already.

Ryuji sat in one of the discarded folding chairs which was found in the corner with the other tables and chairs left there, away from the vegetables and plants cultivated by the gardening club on the other side. He straightened up a bit at the appearance of the frizzy haired student. "Sorry for calling you suddenly, especially since you were talking with Kawakami," he said, before focusing his gaze on Akira. "I bet she already told you stuff like 'don't get involve with Sakamoto' or something like that, huh?"

"She told me you were trouble…" Akira mumbled, shifting his gaze away from Ryuji. He knew though that the teen in front of him was far less from being a bad guy. If anything, the events that transpired in the castle as they escaped in the nick of time showed Akira that much. But really though, was that castle for real…?

"We're pretty much on the same boat then," Ryuji mused, crossing his leg over the other. "I heard you got a criminal record. Everyone's talkin' about it. No wonder you were so headstrong."

Akira frowned at that, but he chose to say nothing and leaned against one of the desks instead. It was becoming perplexing to him how on earth did the entire school become aware of his offense. How the heck did it end up as a gossip story that evidently made people steer clear of him? Did the school administration decide to drop his request and let it get leaked instead?

He didn't want to know the answer of that.

Ryuji sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "What happened earlier…" He quietly started. "What was all that? You know, how we almost got killed and all in the castle… It wasn't a dream, right? You remember it too?" He asked, almost desperate.

Akira nodded after a moment's pause, his expression turning grim. "Yeah, that wasn't a dream." He had no idea how it happened, but they ended up meeting some twisted version of their gym teacher who almost got them executed. He remembered the agony he felt from the voice in his head, that once he took off his mask, it felt like he was finally alive.

He felt a humming pulse in his chest remembering it—Arsene, it was called.

The blonde looked away, turning to gaze up at the skyline instead. "Even if we both remember, it doesn't mean much though. I mean, even if it was a dream, you still saved me from Kamoshida…" Ryuji, sitting back and crossing his arms and legs, looked over him and grinned. "So yeah… thanks for that."

Akira nodded slightly, his lips quirking. "No problem."

"But man, that Kamoshida we saw there…" The smile on the blonde's face was replaced with an unsettling frown. "You prolly don't know about it, but there are some rumors about him."

"Kamoshida…" Akira muttered, furrowing his brows. So that was the gym teacher's name.

"Yeah, that bastard." Ryuji muttered, crossing his arms and glaring ahead of him. "That asshole who's so full of himself, especially at that castle. No one says anything to him just because he's some Olympic medalist who took the volleyball team to Nationals. I'll bet anything that Kamoshida was acting that way in the castle because of that. I mean, it felt crazy real..."

They both leaned back, the silence between them heavy.

"... I wonder if we could go back to the castle again." Ryuji thought aloud, scrunching his face. Then, he shot up from his seat. "Ugh, forget it! Must've all been a dream! It has to be!"

Akira looked on silently, unsure of what to say. For some reason, he wasn't so convinced that it was all a dream. The pulse he felt earlier was a confirmation of that.  _It felt way too real to be just a dream, but…_

Ryuji turned and gave him an apologetic look. "Sorry to drag you all the way here. That's all I had to say." He paused. "You know, we might be pretty similar. I feel like we're gonna get along just fine as "troublemakers.""

He grinned. "I'm Sakamoto Ryuji."

Akira nodded, grinning slightly as well. "Kurusu Akira. Nice to officially meet you."

Ryuji beamed. "I'll come talk to you if I see you around. Don't ignore me, all right? Seeya!" With that, he walked off and left the roof.

The transfer student sighed heavily, thinking of the events that transpired on his first day.  _So much for keeping your head down..._

* * *

**April 12th, Tuesday.**

* * *

_Looks like the weather isn't going to relent anytime soon_ , Reina thought as she looked up from under the station. The skies were still gray and stormy, and the drizzle seemed to drop faster compared to yesterday. _It's a good thing Dr. Takemi reminded me to bring my umbrella along. I didn't think she had it in her to be compassionate; she's definitely full of surprises…_

She took her time walking towards the school gates. This time, she let her earphones dangle around her neck, taking in the peaceful pitter-patter of the rain instead. It wasn't too long until someone joined her in her pace, umbrella in hand as well.

"Hey, Shiomi-san," Amada Ken greeted her, catching her attention. "I see that you take the same path to Shujin as I do."

She turned and nodded, giving him a small smile. "Amada-senpai," she acknowledged. "I didn't know you live around this area."

"I wouldn't be surprised, considering we only met fairly recently," Ken said, amused. "How's adjusting to Tokyo life?"

Reina's smile turned sheepish. "Was it that obvious?"

"With how you snuck glances once in a while around the streets like a lost puppy, yeah," The brunette smirked a bit. "But only a little."

The black-haired girl felt her cheeks flared in embarrassment. "W-Well, in my defense, Tokyo's a really big place to get lost in…"

Ken merely chuckled at that. "I can show you around Tokyo after class later, if you want?"

"Really? But you're probably busy; I don't mean to take your time…"

"It's not a problem. Besides, it'd be a nice break from school-related responsibilities," Ken shrugged.

The grateful smile on Reina's face was enough for the brunette to confirm that she accepted his proposition. The two continued to chat amicably on the way to Shujin, oblivious to the other Shujin students in vicinity. Their gazes were glued to them with rapt attention.

"Hey, isn't that the transfer student?"

"Yeah, but she's not the one with the criminal record. I heard she's from Tatsumi Port Island."

"Isn't that Amada-kun with her?"

"Tch, typical of the Gekkou snobs. Birds of the same feather  _do_  flock together."

"Ugh, he's probably taking pity on her. After all, I did see her with Sakamoto and that criminal transfer student yesterday…"

* * *

Like yesterday, Reina was one of the first to leave the classroom by the time the bell signaled the end of class hours. After quickly packing up, she only gave Ryuji a short nod of acknowledgement before walking out of the classroom, only to stop short when she nearly bumped into someone in the hallway.

"I'm sorry," Reina apologized automatically. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

The deep chuckle was enough for the transferee to recognize who she bumped into. "It's okay. I wasn't looking where I was going either." Ken said light-heartedly, completely unbothered by the little accident.

"Still, I should've watched where I was going…" The black-haired girl mumbled. Somehow, it still felt weird for her to be around Ken. Since meeting him yesterday, she couldn't get the nagging feeling of how familiar he was to her out of her mind. She noticed that he must've felt the same thing too, judging by how he subtly reacted to her yesterday, but he seemed to be taking it to stride.

That, or she really was overthinking things.

"It's fine, really." He waved it off dismissively. "Anyway, how are you settling here in Shujin?"

… She couldn't say much since this was the first she ever attended school, as far as her memory was concerned. "It's a different kind of vibe from what I'm used to, but it's okay, I guess."

The brunette nodded. "Nothing like Gekkoukan, right?"

_… What?_

Before Reina could ask how he knew about Gekkoukan (she read in her old records about having to go to Gekkoukan, but even the name itself did nothing to jog her memory), she noticed Kamoshida a few feet away from them. The volleyball coach had come from the stairs and walked up towards a pretty blonde girl with a wide grin on his face.

"Hey there, Takamaki! You looking for a ride home? Things have been pretty dangerous lately with all those accidents," Kamoshida remarked.

The girl, Takamaki, looked up from her phone. Her expression was akin to a deer caught in the headlights but she smiled politely moments after. "Sorry, I have a photoshoot today. It's for the summer issue, so I can't afford to miss it…"

"Hey, now… being a model's great and all, but don't work your pretty little self to the bone," Kamoshida said, frowning. "You mentioned you weren't feeling well, right? Something about appendicitis?"

Takamaki nodded in confirmation. "Yes. I've been planning to go to the hospital, but I've been busy so lately… Sorry to worry you." She replied, eyes looking downcast.

"You must feel lonely too. I feel bad for keeping your best friend at practice so often." He said sadly, as if sympathizing with her. Then, a thought hit him. "Oh, and be careful around that transfer student… He's got a criminal record, after all. If something were to happen to you…" He trailed off, letting the warning hang in the air…"

"...Right, thank you." Takamaki replied, but she kept her head down to avoid looking him in the eye. "Well, I'll leave first. Please excuse me."

She bowed quietly at Kamoshida before taking her leave. Kamoshida stared at her retreating backside, his eyes drinking in the smooth curves of the girl with lust, before the smile on his face melted into an ugly sneer. "Tch." He muttered angrily before deciding to walk away as well.

Reina watched the whole scene happened and frowned deeply. _A sexual predator running rampant around this school? This is really sick. How come no one noticed this?_

Ken nudged her, trying to get her attention. Reina snapped out of her train of thoughts and gave a reassuring smile to her senior. He motioned for her to follow, with the halls slowly starting to fill with students, and the two started to make their way out of the building.

"Absolutely disgusting," Ken commented suddenly, seemingly resonating with her thoughts earlier. Reina peered over him and didn't miss the pissed look on his face.  _He must have noticed it too then_. "I can't believe no one has looked into this yet."

"Why don't you report him instead?" Reina asked.

This earned a heavy sigh from her senior. "It's not that simple, per se," Ken said, running his fingers lightly through his light brown locks. "Even if I do report him, I don't have enough evidence to prove him dirty. That, and he's got the school administration wrapped around his finger."

"That's just horrible."

Ken gave a dry smile at her response, but said nothing. Just as the two were about to pass by the school gate, they noticed Ryuji and Akira at the end of the stairs.

They seemed to be deep in their conversation, though it looked shady in Reina's perspective.

"I wanna talk about that castle yesterday," the blonde said quietly. "I tried tellin' myself that it was just a dream… but I couldn't do it." He leaned back a bit. "I can't act like nothing happened. It's all connected to that bastard Kamoshida, after all." He crossed his arms, a frown marring his features.

Akira shoved his hands into his pockets with a slight frown. "Right…"

"I wanna find out what's up with that place, no matter what," Ryuji remarked with determination. "And, y'know, you're the only person I can rely on for this stuff. So, you in?"

A pensive look passed Akira's face as he weighed his options. He knew this was going to get him into more trouble but deep inside, he wanted to figure out what was up with what happened yesterday. Maybe this was what the bald man was insinuating in his dream…

"Alright, I'm in." Akira affirmed. "What next?"

"Yes! I knew I could talk some sense into you." Ryuji grinned, pumping up his fist in excitement. "I think we should just try retracing our steps from yesterday. In the meantime, you're walkin' to the station, right? We'll go together. Lemme know if you see any other weird building on the way—"

"Sakamoto-san, Kurusua-san," Ken called out, as he and Reina approached down the steps. "I hope you two are staying out of trouble."

Ryuji looked up in surprise. "Amada-senpai!" He yelped. "Uh, we weren't doing anything…"

"Uh huh," Ken said, clearly unconvinced by that. "What's this about Kamoshida-sensei and some castle?"

The blonde seemed to be breaking out in cold sweat. "Uh… W-we saw him at this weird place, that's all! We were planning to go back to see if it was just our imaginations or shit…"

Reina raised an eyebrow at that.  _Clearly Sakamoto isn't telling the truth. So, what are they really planning to do…?_

Ken stared at him suspiciously, before sighing. "Alright, I'm letting you two off," he said, before giving both of them a warning glare. "But stay out of trouble and don't get involved with him, okay? Otherwise, if I hear so much as a rumor on what stint you guys are pulling, I'm coming after your heads. Especially you, Sakamoto-san."

Ryuji and Akira just nodded meekly at their senior, before turning away to walk towards the station.

Reina turned to the brunette inquisitively. "You're just going to let them go just like that?"

"Well, I can't just sanction them or something when they didn't do anything wrong," Ken mumbled, brushing through his bangs slightly distressed. "And as much as the thought of Kamoshida-sensei is unpleasant to me, I'm not going to take their side either and let this slide. A warning is pretty much all I can give."

"I didn't peg you to be a soft person, Amada-senpai," Reina mused. He did have a point though.

"The things you do in the name of justice," Ken said wryly. "Anyway, ready to take on Tokyo?"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **(Original) A/N:** What do you think of this so far? Your thoughts and constructive criticism are highly appreciated!
> 
> Also, quick question: Knowing that Reina is the reincarnated[ish] P3 Hero, who do you think her Arcana and Persona will be?

**Author's Note:**

>  **(Original) A/N:** so, after scrolling through numerous fanfics on FFN and here, getting through a lot of playthroughs of P3 and P5 and mulling on this idea for quite some time, i finally decided to put this out. i've been meaning to work on something like this since P5 came out, but i couldn't think of how to play it through (but sadly i couldn't add P4 in the mix since i haven't really finished playing it yet *cries*).
> 
> if you guys picked up the hints, ken will be a prominent character here and one of the main characters is built on the P3 Hero but i decided to put my own twist to it (because technically, you're the one who builds up the protag and decide how s/he interacts with the rest, so why not?). but of course, our dear joker still holds the limelight.
> 
> thanks for reading this, and i'm open to constructive criticism and advice on how to improve this more!


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